Stone Sole River

CD - Terra Mama

Play 90 second soundbite of 'Tannhauser Gate' @ 'CD quality'

With Stone Sole River and 'Terra Mama' you're never quite sure whether you've heard it all before or if it's as new and fresh as it could possibly be. Heavy rock riffs, vocal contortions, heady psychedelia and more all come rushing up from nowhere and fuse together in this excellent piece of contemporary work.

The older or more mature listener may believe they've been here many years ago - the younger, open minded ears will hear tons of interesting styles and sounds that'll sound brand new. And, that's where the beauty of Stone Sole River lies; in their bold approach to revisiting classic rock sounds and then venturing into hitherto uncharted territory. The overall effect is one of clever juxtaposition and futuristic vision of musical possibility. 'Terra Mama' never once sounds staid or even slightly banal. The band consist just three awesomely talented and visionary guys; Michael Parker, Carl Meehan and Jon Walsh and together they're attempting to rewrite the last forty years of musical history whilst introducing a cool new ambience to the contemporary rock genre. Sure, I can hear all sorts of influences as I work my way through the eleven tracks. But, at no time have I felt that these guys are simply ripping off anyone's material or style.

Track by track things move from where you think they should be to where Stone Sole River want them to be. Second by second Stone Sole River change the rules, experiment, push the boundaries. 'Terra Mama' is as good as anything I've heard recently. In some ways it's better simply because of it's brave and unexpected melding of genres and moods. Punchy rock ensembles and soft folk laced ditties vie for the headlines as Stone Sole River weave their combined magic with great professionalism and attention to detail. The album as a whole never allows the listener to settle into any single groove - just as you find respite in a mellow little number the heavy riffs and slide accentuated guitars cut back in with a bluesy rock outing that's like a wake-up call.

Clever, clever stuff. With 'Terra Mama' Stone Sole River have laid down a tasty and memorable piece of modern musical experimentation the results of which are quite unique and charming and at the same time brash and bold. Excellent work!!

A - Z Selector

Re-start Site